Youth bodies call for biodiversity conservation in Barind tract

Many of the youth organisations at a meeting in Rajshahi city on Saturday unequivocally called for time-befitting and effective measures for protecting biodiversity and cultural diversity in the region, including its vast Barind tract.

They also unanimously viewed that both biodiversity and cultural diversity are gradually declining due to various reasons posing a serious threat to public life along with the whole ecosystem.

Bangladesh Resource Centre for Indigenous Knowledge (BARCIK) hosted the meeting at its office here today to mark the formation of the executive committee of Barind Tract Youth Organisation Forum (BTYOF).

Leaders and members of 45 youth organisations who are working for improving living and livelihood conditions of the marginalized and ethnic minority people for more than four years joined the meeting and constituted an 11- member BTYOF committee.

BARCIK Regional Coordinator Sahidul Islam, BTYOF President Shaykh Tasnim Jamal, its Vice-president Sabitry Hembrom, Convener Rubel Hossain and members Jubayer Hossain, Russel Sarker and Zahid Hassan addressed the meeting.

In his remarks, Shahidul Islam said school, college and university-level students need proper knowledge about the importance of biodiversity, natural resource conservation and climate change issues so that they can contribute to this field.

To this end, there should be time-befitting measures and institutional learning for them as there is no way but to conserve natural resource conservation in the region to face the adverse impact of climate change for the greater interests of new and future generations.

In the wake of abnormal declining natural resources like native crop seeds, fish and birds species and other wildlife, conservation of natural resources has become indispensable for facing the adverse impacts of climate change.

Islam opined that many native crops and vegetable varieties are gradually declining. Many of the native fish species, particularly the small indigenous ones, are on the verge of extinction due to various reasons.

Importance should be given to capacity building to address climate change in the region with special reference to conservation of drought tolerant species.